Fierce Healthcare offers details on the House Ways and Means Committee’s No Surprises Act hearing, while Healthcare Dive shares details on the House Oversight and Accountability’s PBM reform hearing. Both hearings were held on September 20.
Speaking of the No Surprises Act, the ACA regulators released a proposed rule increasing the government’s NSA arbitration fee from $50 per party to $150 per party next year. The FEHBlog has no idea why the government doesn’t ladder the fee based on the amount in dispute. The government also increased the maximum fee independent dispute resolution entities can charge the parties.
Also, on September 21, CMS announced on its No Surprises Act website
“Effective September 21, 2023, the Departments have directed certified IDR entities to resume processing all single and bundled disputes already submitted to the IDR portal and assigned to a certified IDR entity. The ability to initiate new disputes involving air ambulance items or services as well as batched disputes for air ambulance and non-air ambulance items and services is currently unavailable. IDR portal functionalities related to previously initiated batched disputes are also unavailable. Disputing parties should continue to engage in open negotiation according to the required timeframes.”
“The federal government is again offering free Covid-19 tests to Americans, providing a fifth round of free tests in part to meet current needs and in part to stimulate a domestic testing industry that has struggled with cratering demand for rapid diagnostics.
“The measure, announced Wednesday, will see rapid tests released from the Strategic National Stockpile. In addition, 12 domestic test manufacturers will receive investments totaling $600 million to help “warm-base” the U.S. capacity for rapid test production, both for Covid and future disease threats. * * *
“Households will be entitled to receive four free rapid tests apiece, with ordering at COVIDtests.gov opening on Sept. 25. O’Connell said test shipments are expected to start on Oct. 2.”
The Office of Management and Budget’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has completed work on a regulation that will affect Section 111 reporters including group health plans and personal injury law firms, among others:
AGENCY: HHS-CMS RIN: 0938-AT86 Status: Concluded
TITLE: Medicare Secondary Payer and Certain Civil Money Penalties (CMS-6061) Section 3(f)(1) Significant: No
STAGE: Final Rule Economically Significant: No
RECEIVED DATE: 03/01/2022 LEGAL DEADLINE: Statutory
REVIEW EXTENDED
COMPLETED: 09/11/2023 COMPLETED ACTION: Consistent with Change
On September 21, CMSfinalized a rule to “streamline enrollment in the Medicare Savings Programs (MSPs), making coverage more affordable for an estimated 860,000 people.”